Published Oct 2024
Starting and running a social enterprise
The social enterprise journey can be both exciting and challenging. This section provides resources and tools to help you navigate the process of starting and running a successful social business. From understanding the problem you want to solve to measuring your impact and building a strong team, we cover the key areas that every social entrepreneur and practitioner needs to consider to turn intentions into impact.
Understanding problems
Before diving into solutions, it's crucial to have a deep understanding of the problem you're trying to solve. This section provides some resources that will help you explore the root causes of social and environmental issues, engage with affected communities, and identify pathways to create meaningful change.
Resources
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Theaster Gates, a potter by training and a social activist by calling, tells his story of transforming abandoned buildings to create community hubs that connect and inspire those who live there. A famously inspiring talk, it shows how problems can be reframed as opportunities, how to start with what you’ve got, how to make something out of nothing and how culture can be a catalyst for social transformation.
This handbook helps you answer, ‘what problem are we really trying to solve with our social enterprise or project?’ Understanding this helps to find better solutions. This canvas and supporting guide offer a selection of tools to help you frame problems, recognise different types of problems, and open up opportunities for action.
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Building a social enterprise business model
A solid business model is the foundation of any successful social enterprise. Here, you'll find resources to help you develop and evolve a business model that balances impact goals with financial sustainability. The resources will cover topics like start-up thinking, value propositions, customer segments, and importance of partnerships.
Resources
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A 2-minute introduction to the Business Model Canvas - a tool that helps people design and develop business models for new ventures. This method comes from Strategyzer's best selling management book Business Model Generation and has been used by entrepreneurs and enterprises around the world.
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This booklet goes beyond the Business Model Canvas as a general tool. It outlines how Ingrid Burkett, an Australian social entrepreneur, applies the Canvas to the specific needs of social enterprise. The booklet walks you through how to use the Canvas step-by-step.
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Measuring and evaluating impact
Demonstrating your social impact is essential for attracting funders, customers, and supporters. Understanding your impact is essential for learning and improving your approach. In this section, you'll find resources that will help you measure and manage your impact, and also good practices for reporting and communicating with your stakeholders.
Resources
Seedkit
Seedkit is a nationwide project and platform that helps social enterprises measure and communicate their impact. Its self-managed reporting platform allows social enterprises to measure, track, and communicate operations and impacts via customised dashboards and reports.
A rich introduction to the history of measurement and how different drivers have informed how we think about, and practice, impact measurement and evaluation today. Also includes some useful graphics that help distinguish different terms and approaches from each other.
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Accessing appropriate funding and finance
Securing 'the right' funding is a common challenge for social enterprises. This section will guide you through the different types of capital available, including grants, loans, equity investment, and crowdfunding. You'll also learn what's required to develop an investment case and build relationships with impact investors.
Resources
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Prepare for funding, SEFA
Created by SEFA, this guide outlines four key areas—Purpose, Plan, Profit, and Prudence—for social enterprises to focus on when preparing for funding.
The free, self-directed Impact Investing Hub Playbook supports Australia’s impact investing ecosystem, offering modular content on Impact Investing, Impact Measurement, and Revenue Diversification, tailored for investors, advisors, and organisations seeking investment.
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Legal and governance
Navigating the legal and governance landscape is crucial for the long-term stability and success of any social enterprise. Here, you'll find resources on choosing the right legal structure for your venture, whether it's a non-profit, cooperative, or a company. We'll also cover topics like board governance, intellectual property, and risk management.
Resources
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ICDA supports community sector governance with training, accredited courses, tech tools, free resources, and financial guides for not-for-profits and social enterprises.
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CPA Australia’s guide aids not-for-profits, including social enterprises, in finance management, governance, risk, compliance, and tax—vital for sustainable operations.
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Building and managing teams
As your social enterprise grows, you'll need to build and manage a team of passionate and skilled individuals. Here, you'll find resources on recruiting, onboarding, and developing your team members. We'll also cover topics like creating a positive workplace culture, managing volunteers, and fostering diversity and well-being in the workplace.
Resources
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Frederic Laloux's article explores Teal organisations, a progressive management model emphasising self-management, wholeness, and purpose. It outlines organisational paradigms, highlights successful examples, and offers insights for social enterprises to balance purpose and effectiveness, even with partial adoption.
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This video features Aaron Dignan, author of Brave New Work, sharing insights on transforming outdated work practices.
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Getting to market
To achieve your impact goals, you need to get your products or services into the hands of your target customers. In this section, you'll learn about market research, empathy mapping, brand building, the marketing and sales cycle, social procurement, and payments for outcomes. Many of the resources explore the unique market challenges and opportunities for social enterprises.
Resources
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This concise resource provides a comprehensive guide on how to conduct market research, aimed at beginners. It explains the importance of market research, outlines different types and methods, and offers a step-by-step process for conducting research.
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This is a long-form video lecture from Harvard Innovation Labs for conventional start-ups and business, but it provides a comprehensive framework for thinking about and planning 'go-to' market strategies.
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Coming soon
Stay tuned as we continue to build out "Starting and running a social enterprise". Other topics which will soon be included are:
- Communications and stakeholder engagement
- Pitching your business
- Other useful learning platforms
Understorey points to a range of quality resources that help the sector to learn and exchange about social enterprise. Do you have a good resource you would like to recommend? Share it with us here.
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